Method of applying a cover to a golf club shaft

ABSTRACT

A method of applying a cover to a shaft of a golf club includes fitting the cover onto the golf club such that a shaft of the club passes through a sleeve of heat-shrinkable material adapted to fit around an exposed portion of the shaft, positioning the cover such that the sleeve is substantially in register with the exposed portion of the shaft, and applying heat to the sleeve to cause the sleeve to shrink onto the exposed portion of the shaft.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to golf clubs.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Golf club shafts are conventionally made from metal, typically stainlesssteel, or carbon fibre based composite material, commonly referred to asgraphite. The shaft is subject to wear and tear and metal shafts inparticular are susceptible to rust. It is desirable therefore to providea cover for protecting the shafts during use.

It would also be desirable to provide means for allowing indicia and/ordecoration to be applied to the shaft of a golf club.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A first aspect of the invention provides a method of applying a cover toa shaft of a golf club, the golf club comprising a head provided at afirst end of the shaft; and a grip provided at a second end of theshaft, an exposed portion of the shaft being defined between said headand said grip, said cover comprising a sleeve of heat-shrinkablematerial adapted to fit around said exposed portion of the shaft, themethod comprising:

fitting said cover onto said golf club such that said shaft passesthrough said sleeve;

positioning said cover such that said sleeve is substantially inregister with said exposed portion of the shaft; and

applying heat to said sleeve to cause said sleeve to shrink onto saidexposed portion of the shaft.

Preferably, at least part of said exposed portion of the shaft is heatedprior to said step of applying heat to said sleeve.

Typically, a hosel and/or a ferrule is provided on the club head, theshaft being connected to the head at the hosel, and the method mayinclude positioning the cover so that it surrounds at least part of thehosel and/or ferrule. Optionally, heat is first applied to said sleeveat or near the hosel and/or ferrule, and subsequently to the remainderof the sleeve.

Preferably, the method includes applying, during heating of the sleeve,tension to the sleeve in a direction longitudinal of the sleeve.

Preferably, the method includes suspending, during heating of thesleeve, the club by the sleeve.

Preferably, the method includes positioning the sleeve so that itsurrounds an in use lower end of the grip.

The sleeve is typically formed from heat shrinkable plastics, forexample polyethylene terephthalate.

A second aspect of the invention provides a cover for a shaft of a golfclub, the golf club comprising a head provided at a first end of theshaft; and a grip provided at a second end of the shaft, an exposedportion of the shaft being defined between said head and said grip, saidcover comprising a sleeve of heat-shrinkable material adapted to fitaround said exposed portion of the shaft.

Further advantageous aspects of the invention will become apparent tothose ordinarily skilled in the art upon review of the followingdescription of an embodiment of the invention and with reference to theaccompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

An embodiment of the invention is now described by way of example andwith reference to the accompanying drawings and which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a typical golf club;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a cover for application to the shaft ofthe golf club;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a guide for assisting the application ofthe cover to the golf club shaft; and

FIG. 4 shows a user held heat gun applying heat to a cover fitted to agolf club shaft.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows, generally indicated as 10, a typical golf club. The golfclub 10 comprises a shaft 12 having a club head 14 at one end and a grip16 at the other end. The grip 16 is usually fitted over the end of theshaft 12 and is typically made from rubber. The head 14 comprises ahosel 18 for receiving the end of the shaft 12. A ferrule 20, which istypically made of plastics, may be provided around the shaft 12 adjacentthe hosel 18. The head 14 may take a variety of different shapes andsizes depending on the intended use for the club 10. The head 14 istypically formed from metal, wood or a carbon based composite material.

The shaft 12 is usually formed from metal, or a composite material,especially a carbon fibre based composite material commonly referred toas graphite. A portion 22 of the shaft 12 extending between the in-uselower end of the grip 16 and the in-use upper end of the ferrule 20 (orthe hosel 18 if the ferrule 20 is not present) is exposed.

Referring now to FIG. 2, there is shown, generally indicated as 30, acover for the shaft 12, and in particular for the exposed portion 22 ofthe shaft 12. The cover 30 comprises a sleeve 32 of heat-shrinkablematerial. Preferably, the heat shrinkable material comprises a heatshrinkable plastics. The preferred plastics is polyethylene terephtalate(PET), although alternative plastics or thermoplastic material may beused, for example polyvinylchloride (PVC) or polyolefin. The heatshrinkable material preferably has a shrinkage rate in the transversedirection (TD) of approximately 75% or higher.

The sleeve 32 is open ended and may be formed by any convenient method,for example wrapping a sheet of suitable material on itself and weldingor seaming its edges together to form a tube. The length of the sleeve32 is approximately the same as the length of a typical shaft 12, and inparticular the typical length of the exposed portion 22 of the shaft 12.The length of the sleeve 32 may be less than, substantially as long as,or longer than the length of the exposed shaft portion 22, as isdescribed in more detail hereinafter. Alternatively, the sleeve 32 maybe dimensioned to cover only part of the exposed portion 22 of theshaft.

The width, or diameter, of the sleeve 32 is preferably substantially thesame as the width or diameter as the butt 17 of the grip 16. Inparticular, it is preferred that the width or diameter of the sleeve 32is just wide enough to allow it to be slipped over the butt 17. Makingthe width of the sleeve 32 just wide enough to allow it to be fittedover the end 17 of the club 10 is preferred since the wider the sleeveis, the more difficult it is to shrink it neatly onto the shaft 12.

Referring to FIG. 3, advantageously a guide 40 is provided to assist theinitial fitting of the sleeve 32 onto the shaft 12 of the club 10. Theguide 40 may be tapered, as illustrated, having a first, relativelywide, end 42 and a second, relatively narrow, end 44. The wide end 42 isadapted to fit on to the butt 17 of the club 10. The narrow end 44 isnarrower than the width of the sleeve 32. With the wide end 42 of theguide 40 fitted on to the butt 17, the sleeve 32 may readily be slippedon to the shaft 12 over the guide 40, the guide 40 helping to feed thesleeve 32 on to the grip 16 and thereafter on to the exposed shaftportion 22. The guide may take any other suitable form. For example itneed not be tapered and may alternatively have a relatively round endand a relatively flat end. The guide 40 optionally has oppositelydisposed fold lines (not shown) running longitudinally along its sidesto allow it to be flat packed when not in use. By way of example theguide 40 may take the shape of a truncated cone.

The preferred method of applying the sleeve 32 to the shaft 12 is nowdescribed. Firstly, if necessary, the sleeve 32 is cut so that itslength is slightly longer than the exposed portion 22 of the shaft 12and in particular so that, when fitted to the club 10, it covers all orpart of the ferrule 20, or all or part of the hosel 18, if the ferrule20 is not present. In addition, it is preferred that the length of thesleeve 32 is such that it also covers the in use lower end of the grip16.

The sleeve 32 is fitted onto the shaft 12 of the club 10 via the buttend 17 of the grip 16 using, if necessary, the guide 40. The sleeve 32is passed along the length of the shaft 12 until it surrounds theexposed portion 22 of the shaft 12. As indicated above, when the sleeve32 is correctly positioned, its ends also surround, respectively, all orpart of the ferrule 20/hosel 18, and preferably also lower end of thegrip 16.

Before applying heat to the sleeve 32, it is advantageous to pre-heatall or part of the exposed section 22 of the shaft 12 and, preferablyalso, the ferrule 20 (when present) and/or the hosel 18. Typically, itis sufficient to pre-heat only the in use lower part of the exposedshaft 22, for example the in use lower third or half of the exposedportion 22. Advantageously, the pre-heating is performed after thesleeve 32 has been partly fitted over the shaft 12 so that thepre-heated portion of the shaft does not cool unduly while the sleeve 32is being fitted. Heat may be applied to the club 10 and the sleeve 32using any conventional heating device, for example a heat gun 50 orhairdryer. Preferably, the heating device should have an electricalpower of at least 2 KWs.

After the pre-heating, the sleeve 32 is pulled down over the exposedportion 32 of the shaft 12 until it at least partly covers the ferrule20/hosel 18 as applicable.

With the sleeve 32 correctly positioned, heat is then applied to theexternal surface of the sleeve 32 in the region of the hosel 18/ferrule20 and typically also the adjacent region of the exposed shaft 22. Theheat is applied all around the club 10 until the in use lower part ofthe sleeve 32 shrinks on to the ferrule 20/hosel 18, and typically alsoonto the adjacent portion of the shaft 12. The act of shrinking thelower end of the sleeve 32 on to the hosel 18/ferrule 20 provides gripfor the subsequent stages of the application process.

Heat is applied along the length of the shaft 12 until the sleeve 32 hasbeen shrunk on to the exposed portion 32 of the shaft 12 and,preferably, also on to the in use lower end of the grip 16. The typicalapplication process involves applying heat in stages to the sleeve 32starting at its in use bottom and working towards its in use top.Typically, this is achieved by holding the nozzle of the heat gun 50close enough to the sleeve 32 to shrink, for example, 2 to 3 centimetresat a time. It may be necessary to apply heat around the sleeve 32, or atleast on opposite sides of the shaft/sleeve assembly to ensure that thesleeve 32 shrinks fully on to the shaft 12. Alternatively, depending onthe nature of the heating device, the entire sleeve 32 may be heatshrunk at once.

In order to keep the sleeve 32 taut, it is preferred to support theclub's weight by holding the sleeve 32, conveniently adjacent its in usetop end. This creates tension in the sleeve 32 in a longitudinaldirection, i.e. along its length, to prevent it from collapsing underits own weight in the region being heated. The action of applyingtension allows the sleeve 32 to stretch (typically by around 10%) duringthe remainder of the heating process. It will be understood that thetension can be applied in other ways, for example clamping the head 14of the club and applying a pulling force to the sleeve 32.

Optionally, the in use lower end of the grip 16 can be rolled back sothat the in use upper end of the sleeve 32, when shrunk, is locatedunder the in use lower end of the grip 16. Otherwise, the end portion ofthe sleeve 32 which overlaps with the grip 16 can be removed using aknife (not shown). Similarly, the end of the sleeve 32 which overlapswith the hosel 18/ferrule 20 can be removed using a knife or othersuitable implement.

Preferably, the ends of the shrunken sleeve 32 which has been cut, areheated to ensure that they shrink properly on to the shaft 12.

In the foregoing description, the sleeve 32 is shrunk onto the hosel endof the shaft first, and then shrunk onto the rest of the exposed portionof the shaft in a direction towards the grip. Alternatively, the sleeve32 may be shrunk onto the grip, or grip end of the shaft first, and thenshrunk onto the rest of the exposed portion of the shaft in a directiontowards the hosel. Alternatively still, the shrinking process may beginat an intermediate part of the sleeve 32.

The sleeve 32 can easily be removed from the shaft by cutting it with aknife, or other implement, and pulling it off the shaft 12. Since thesleeve 32 holds itself in position on the shaft portion 22 by the gripcaused by the shrink-wrapping process, there is no adhesive and thesleeve 32 is easy to remove.

It is intended that the sleeve 32 remains in place during use of theclub, i.e. during play, storage and transport. The external surface ofthe sleeve may carry indicia (not shown) such as for example colours,patterns or designs which may be decorative in effect and/or may bepromotional in nature.

Typically, before heating the sleeves are in the region of 760 mm long.A typical sleeve 32 weighs approximately 4 grams.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein whichmay be modified or varied without departing from the scope of theinvention.

1. A method of applying a cover to a shaft of a golf club, the golf clubcomprising a head provided at a first end of the shaft; and a gripprovided at a second end of the shaft, an exposed portion of the shaftbeing defined between said head and said grip, said cover comprising asleeve of heat-shrinkable material adapted to fit around said exposedportion of the shaft, the method comprising: fitting said cover ontosaid golf club such that said shaft passes through said sleeve;positioning said cover such that said sleeve is substantially inregister with said exposed portion of the shaft; and applying heat tosaid sleeve to cause said sleeve to shrink onto said exposed portion ofthe shaft.
 2. A method as claimed in claim 1, further including heatingat least part of said exposed portion of the shaft prior to said step ofapplying heat to said sleeve.
 3. A method as claimed in claim 1, whereina hosel is provided on the club head, the shaft being connected to thehead at the hosel, and wherein the method includes positioning the coverso that it surrounds at least part of the hosel.
 4. A method as claimedin claim 3, further including first applying heat to said sleeve at thehosel, and subsequently applying heat to the remainder of the sleeve. 5.A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein a ferrule is provided on an endof the exposed portion of the shaft adjacent the club head, and whereinthe method includes positioning the cover so that it surrounds at leastpart of the ferrule.
 6. A method as claimed in claim 5 whereby includingfirst applying heat to said sleeve at the ferrule and subsequentlyapplying heat to the remainder of the sleeve.
 7. A method as claimed inclaim 1, where the method includes applying, during heating of thesleeve, tension to the sleeve in a direction longitudinal of the sleeve.8. A method as claimed in claim 7, the method including suspending,during heating of the sleeve, the club by the sleeve.
 9. A method asclaimed in claim 1 including positioning the sleeve so that it surroundsan in use lower end of the grip.
 10. A method as claimed in claim 3wherein the sleeve is dimensioned to cover, when substantially inregister with said exposed portion of the shaft, said exposed portion ofthe shaft and at least part of said hosel.
 11. A method as claimed inclaim 5, wherein the sleeve is dimensioned to cover, when substantiallyin register with said exposed portion of the shaft, said exposed portionof the shaft and at least part of said ferrule.
 12. A method as claimedin claim 1, wherein the sleeve is dimensioned to cover, whensubstantially in register with said exposed portion of the shaft, an inuse lower end of said grip.
 13. A method as claimed in claim 1, whereinthe sleeve is formed from heat shrinkable plastics.
 14. A method asclaimed in claim 13, wherein said sleeve is formed from polyethyleneterephthalate.
 15. A cover for a shaft of a golf club, the golf clubcomprising a head provided at a first end of the shaft; and a gripprovided at a second end of the shaft, an exposed portion of the shaftbeing defined between said head and said grip, said cover comprising asleeve of heat-shrinkable material adapted to fit around said exposedportion of the shaft.
 16. A cover as claimed in claim 15, wherein thesleeve is dimensioned to cover, when substantially in register with saidexposed portion of the shaft, said exposed portion of the shaft and atleast part of said hosel.
 17. A cover as claimed in claim 15, whereinthe sleeve is dimensioned to cover, when substantially in register withsaid exposed portion of the shaft, at least part of said ferrule.
 18. Acover as claimed in claim 15, wherein the sleeve is dimensioned tocover, when substantially in register with said exposed portion of theshaft, an in use lower end of said grip.
 19. A cover as claimed in claim15, wherein the sleeve is formed from heat shrinkable plastics.
 20. Acover as claimed in claim 15, wherein said sleeve is formed frompolyethylene terephthalate.